Bible Passage: Mark 10:17-27
Pastor: Joel Jenswold
Sermon Date: October 24, 2021

Bulletin October 24, 2021

In the name of, and to the eternal glory of, Jesus,

“That’s impossible!”  How many times couldn’t we say that as we look at the ministry of Jesus.  Jesus looks out over a crowd of over 5,000 hungry people and over here stands a boy with five loaves of bread and two small fish.  We hear one of the disciples ask rhetorically, “What is that among so many?”  We chime in, “What he said!”  Jesus says, “Bring them to me.”  And thousands of people go away filled with good bread and fish.

The disciples have been out all night on the lake and despite their expertise as fishermen and all their know-how on the Sea of Galilee, they got skunked.  The next morning Jesus says, “Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch.” (Luke 5:4)  Peter answers, “Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything.  But because you say, I will let down the nets.” (v. 5)  The next thing you know their nets are tearing as they pull them in because of the weight of the fish in them!

Jesus stands in a graveyard with two sisters.  Their brother is in the tomb in front of them.  Jesus says, “Take away the stone.” (John 11:39)  The one sister, Martha, objects, “But, Lord, by this time there is a bad odor for he has been there four days.”  A few moments later, they are unwrapping their brother from his grave clothes and giving him the biggest hug they ever gave him!

Scripture is filled with examples of man’s “impossible” and God’s “possible.”  Our text today contains one of them.  And in our text, it is the biggest “impossible/possible” scenario ever.  It is the whole matter of getting a body into heaven.  And once again, we will see that God’s “POSSIBLE” is Bigger than Man’s “IMPOSSIBLE.”

This story begins as Jesus is traveling on his way to Jerusalem to suffer and die and rise again.  While he walks along the road, a man comes running up to Jesus.  I’m sure others in the crowd recognized him.  “Hey, it’s so-and-so!”  He was a young man, probably about the same age as Jesus.  He was well-respected and was even a leader at his local synagogue.  We don’t know how he came by his money, but he had a lot of it!  As we will hear in a moment, he was an upstanding guy.  He was a good son, a faithful husband (if he was married).  He was dad-of-the-year (if he had children).  He probably had the mug that said “Best Dad in the World.”  He was an honest businessman, a good citizen, a good neighbor.  Mr. Wonderful!

But something is troubling Mr. Wonderful.  And that is why he huffs and puffs his way to Jesus, falls down on his knees, and says, Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life? (v. 17)  His soul is uneasy.  Sure, he’s moral, but is he moral “enough?”  He believes Jesus can tell him that last thing he needs to put him over the top.  And, being the over-achiever he is, he approaches it with his “can-do” attitude.  “Just tell me, and I’ll do it!”

Jesus answers the man’s question as he asked it.  So, you want to be a “do-er”?  Jesus tells him to “do” the commandments.  Notice, Jesus mentions commandments 4-10 (the 9th and 10th in kind of a paraphrase).  We might say Jesus was lovingly setting him up.  Mr. Wonderful takes the bait.  He owns to having kept them all since he was a lad.

Jesus locks eyes with the man.  Oh, how he loved this rich, decent, respectable, desperate man! One thing you lack.  Go, sell whatever you have, and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven.  Then, come follow me.  What was Jesus trying to do?  Do the monks have it right?  Must we divest ourselves of worldly goods, take a vow of poverty, in order to go to heaven?  No.  What Jesus says to this man would reveal this man’s heart.  This man loved his money.  He did not fear, love, and trust in God above all things.  This man was convinced he had kept all the commandments.  He hadn’t even gotten past the first one.  The man is gutted; he walks away.

The disciples are stunned.  They stand there blinking.  It is a teaching moment for the Master.  Children, how hard it is for those who trust in their riches to enter the kingdom of God! (v. 24)  Pay careful attention to Jesus’ words!  He does not say riches are evil.  A dollar is just an object, no different than a poached egg.  It’s what our heart does with dollars.  Jesus talks about those who trust in their riches.  People can easily begin to trust in dollars.  “Trust.”  That’s what you do to a god!  Gods help us and take care of us.  Dollars become a god.  “My dollars will help me!  My dollars will take care of me!”  The one with enough of them trusts that dollars can give peace and security and good health and a happy life and retirement.  By the way, in the Large Catechism, Martin Luther reminds us all:  “This desire for wealth clings and sticks to our nature all the way to the grave.”  Jesus makes the shocking statement that it is easier for a gigantic camel to go through the tiny eye of a needle than for those who love money to enter the kingdom of God.

The disciples can hardly believe what they are hearing.  Who then can be saved? (v. 26)  They are looking at what has just transpired.  They have just come to grips with the fact that Mr. Wonderful is on the outside of the kingdom of God.  Usually the rich and moral people have all the advantages!  It is as shocking as it is basic to an understanding of the kingdom of God.  “Decent morals” don’t get you to heaven.  In fact, hell will be filled with decent, moral people.  Your status in this world, your level of achievement, your drive, your zeal…none of it gains access to the Kingdom.  The Beatles once sang, “Money can’t but you love.”  It can’t buy you heaven, either.

Jesus said, For people, it is impossible, but not for God, because all things are possible for God. (v. 27)  God’s “possible” is bigger than man’s “impossible.”  And in Christ Jesus, God has, through a series of “impossible” things, done the impossible.  Provide a substitute for every sinner in the world in the form of God’s Son in human flesh?  Man says “impossible.”  God says “possible.”  Have this Savior come into the world through a virgin birth?  Man says “impossible.”  God says “possible.”  Have this Savior live a perfect, sinless life, and then credit that perfect morality to our account?  Man says “impossible.”  God says “possible.”  Transfer the guilt of every human being who has ever existed, or who will ever exist, onto this Savior and Substitute so that he can pay the debt of our guilt on the cross?  Man says “impossible.”  God says “possible.”  Have this Savior come back to life after dying and thus become the Resurrection and the Life and the only cure for death in this death-saturated world?  Man says “impossible.”  God says “possible.”  Convince people of the truth of this wonderful, impossible story so they believe it?  Man says “impossible.”  God says “possible.”  Transport the soul of this poor, unworthy sinner to paradise in the moment of my death?  My own heart fears “impossible.”  God says “possible.”

In every case where man’s possibilities end, God is just beginning.  In every case where man cries, “Impossible,”  God declares, “Possible!”  In every case, God’s “POSSIBLE” is bigger than man’s “IMPOSSIBLE.”

Amen.

Permission to podcast / stream the music in this service obtained from ONE LICENSE with license #A-716390. All rights reserved.

If you would like to give an offering after today’s worship, click here.